Nakayama is between Narita And Haneda International Airport

Nanso Satomi Hakkenden / Biographies of Eight Dogs

Nanso Satomi Hakkenden is a fiction of a Sengoku Busho of Satomi Clan in the southern part of Chiba prefecture in Warring States Period written by Bakin Takizawa (Kyokutei). The story is organized 106 volumes in 9 series published in late Edo period from 1814 to 1842.
The fantastic story tells that Eight heroes having virtuous gems describing
Jin (benevolence), Gi (justice), Rei (courtesy), Chi (wisdom), Chu (loyalty),
Shin (faith), Ko (filial) and Tei (precedence to the elder) helped the
Satomi Clan to build their territory in Chiba in mid-Muromachi Period.
The story is a morality drama, its framework is based on the famous Chinese fantasy 'Suikoden', Satomiki (the record of Satomi Family), Satomi Kudaiki (the record of the Nine Generations of Satomi Family) and Hojo Godaiki (the record of the Five Generations of Hojo Family). Sometimes it is called 'Satomi Hakkennden' and 'Hakkenden'.
The story started after the lost the battle at Yuki, the young samurai Yoshizane Satomi escaped to Awa province (the southern part of Chiba prefecture).
Later Yoshizane became a lord at Takitajo Castle at Awa province. When Yoshizane was attacked by Kagetsura Anzai who owned Tateyamajo Castle
next to him, his loved dog named Yatsufusa defeated Anzai. Then Yatsufusa
and his daughter the princess Fushihime got married as the rewards of his
contribution. at the battle. However, Daisuke Kanamari who had been Fusahime's
fiance shot Yatsufusa to take the princess, but she also hurt her, and
she finally suicide. At the death of the princess Fushihime, the Eight
Gems that En no Gyoja, a great heroic priest in Japan, gave her flew off
in all directions, then the Eight Heroes appeared. Daisuke Kanamari became
a priest to hold for the repose of her soul and searched the 8 heroes.
The eight heroes also have a letter Inu in their last name, Masashi Shinbei
Inue symbolized Jin from Ichikawa, Yoshito Sosuke Inukawa of Gi, Masanori
Daikaku Inumura of Rei, Tanetomo Keno Inusaka of Chi, Tadatomo Dosetsu
Inuyama of Chu, Nobumichi Genpachi Inukai of Shin, Moritaka Shino Inuzuka
of Ko and Yasuyori Kobungo Inuta of Tei from Gyotoku in Ichikawa. Daisuke
found them and took them to meet Yoshizane Satomi. Then they helped Yoshizane
to build the Satomi's state in Boso peninsula.
Besides the story is deeply related to Ichikawa, the eight heroes fought
several battles, especially the final battle of the story named Kanto Taisen,
the great battle in Kanto, was played at Gyotoku and Futamata in Ichikawa and Suzaki. The two heroes were from Ichikawa.

Bakin Takizawa / Bakin Kyokutei (1767-1848)

Bakin Takizawa was a novelist in Edo period at FukagawaEdo. His real name was Okikuni, later Tokuru. And also his pseudonym was Kyokutei,
so sometimes he was called Bakin Kyokutei.
His father was a steward of a direct of the shogun Nobushige Matsudaira in Fukagawa. Bakin ran away from home at age of 14, he worked as a foot samurai soldier and changed his master frequently. Finally, he entered the school under Kyoden Santo a plot writer and a ukiyoe painter in fall of 1790. Next year, he published 'Tsukai hatashite nibun kyogen' an illustrated storybook in yellow covers.
In 1793, Bakin was adopted by a clog dealer as a husband for a daughter, and he was intended to write and started to write novels.
He wrote about 1,400 works for 82 years of his life.
His tomb is in Shinkoji Temple in Myogadani, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, and also there is a monument showing his birth place in Hirano in Koto-ku, Tokyo.
His works: Nanso Satomi Hakkenden (Biographies of Eight Dogs), Kinseisetsu Bishonenroku, Kabukijo Suikoden, etc.

Satomi Family

Satomi Family in Awa province was one of the sengoku daimyo (a warlord in the Warring States Period) and was descendants of Yoshishige
Nitta from Seiwa Genji Clan. Yoshitoshi, the son of Yoshishige, lived in Satomi-go, Kamitsuke province
(Gunma prefecture), so he named Satomi on his last name.
Satomi Family served Kamakura Shogunate, then Muromachi shogunate. In the middle of Muromachi period, Iemoto Satomi supported Haruomaru and Yasuomaru the son of Mochiuji Ashikaga,
the fourth Shogun in Kanto, at the battle of Yuki in 1441, they lost the
battle. Iemoto was died in the battle and his son Yoshizane escaped to
Miura Family in Miura peninsula in Sagami province (Kangawa prefecture).
Yoshizane built his state in Awa province with much support by the Miura and built his castle in Shirahama while
the strong regional clans, Tojo, Kanamari, Maru and Anzai Family conflicted
to each other. Finally, Yoshizane conquered Awa in 1445.
Yoshimichi the son of Yoshizane conquered Kazusa province and they extended their influences to Kanto region to oppose to Hojo Family in Odawara.
Yoshitaka, the nephew of Yoshimichi first took Hojo's side, but he formed
alliance with Koyumi Kubo (shogun) Yoshiaki Ashikaga and fought against
Hojo Family twice battles at Konodai in Ichikawa city after 1537, and he lost them. Yoshiyori the grandson of Yoshitaka also
formed alliance with Takeda Family in Kai province and Uesugi Family in Echigo to fight against the Hojo.
In 1590, Yoshiyasu the son of Yoshiyori went to the Siege of Odawara late,
so Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the Kanpaku Dajo-daijin (the supreme minister and chancellor) , only
allowed him to keep Awa province, he confiscated Kazusa because of his
lateness.
As Satomi Family took Tokugawa's side at the Battle at Sekigahara in 1600, they got a part of Kazusa as the rewards of the contribution at the battle.
However, Satomi Family moved to Kurayoshi in Hoki province (Totori prefecture) as the lord Tadayoshi's grandfather in law Tadayoshi Okubo were deprived of sumrai status and forfeited their territories as Choan Okubo whom he had recommended to be the manager of gold and shiver mines obtained much money illegally. In 1622, Satomi Family became extinct as Tadayoshi had had no child.
Now there was the memorial monument for the Satomi in Satomi Prak in Ichikawa city built in 1829.
Moreover raising Satomi Family in Awa province was the model for Nanso Satomi Hakkenden (Biographies of Eight Dogs).